Draft Notes

* Deone Bucannon is an interesting Safety prospect. The public consensus is that he’s a 2nd round pick. I’ve seen some people consider him as a fringe 1st rounder. I would not consider him for the 1st round at all.

Bucannon is a tough player to evaluate. You want to like the guy because of the physical way he plays, but there are some concerns. Put on the Cal game and you’ll see him miss 4 tackles. Put on the Oregon game and you’ll see him struggle against their spread attack.

The NFL game is more about being spread out and playing in space. That’s not Bucannon’s strength. He is better at playing in traffic. He tested well at the Combine, but that athleticism doesn’t show up on tape.

Bucannon did have 6 INTs this year, but many of them came on bad throws. Give the guy credit for making the plays, but they were more about QB error than his playmaking skills. I do think he shows a good understanding of the passing game and passing lanes. Bucannon just looks a bit slow at times in coverage.

* NT Tim Jernigan from Florida State is a really impressive player. He can play in the 3-4 or 4-3. Casual fans might watch his games and come away with mixed feelings, but if you can appreciate strength and leverage, Jernigan will impress you. He can 2-gap. He can eat up blocks. He can take on double teams. Jernigan stays square to the LOS and plays the run well. He’s got some athleticism. When he’s able to shoot gaps, he has the quickness to be disruptive. Really good player.

Unfortunately, Jernigan just tested positive at the Combine. Dumb. You can argue about marijuana use, but that’s not really the point. He knew he would be tested in Indy, but still showed up and failed. That shows poor discipline and stupidity. I think many of us know people who were going to take a drug test for a job and stayed clean until the test was over.

Plenty of NFL players are regular smokers. Most know when their annual test is coming up and do what it takes to pass the test, then they go right back to firing up. All that takes is some discipline and effort. If you can’t pass the test at the Combine, will you pass the annual test you get once in the league?

* There is now some talk that OLBs Jeremiah Attaochu and Marcus Smith could go in the 1st round. I like both players quite a bit. Attaochu is the better pass rusher, while Smith is the more complete player.

* I’m starting to wonder if Dee Ford goes in the 1st round. He is a pure speed rusher. That’s a great fit for some schemes, but not all. I think Seattle at 32 and the Jaguars in the 2nd round could covet him.

* RB Bishop Sankey cuts well and makes some impressive moves. But he looks slow and awkward in the backfield. I really wonder how his game will translate to the NFL. LeSean McCoy gets away with making a lot of cuts because he is a freak. Sankey isn’t close to that level with his moves. I don’t like him very much at all.

I’m not a big fan of the RB class in general.

* I cannot see WR Jodan Matthews going in the 1st round. There are just too many other WRs that are better than him. I think he’ll go in the mid-to-late 2nd round. Could turn out to be a terrific NFL player, but he does have an issue with drops.

* ILB Avery Williamson is growing on me. Tough inside tackler. Will take on blockers. Strong, physical player. Moves pretty well laterally. I just wish he was a bit faster. Could be a good run-stuffer in the 3-4.

3 Responses to Draft Notes

I’m smitten with Attaochu but this is the first I’ve heard of him possibly sneaking into the first round. From an Eagles perspective, I would love a trade down to land Atta at the bottom of the first or top of the 2nd.